10. User Interface
Its often taken for granted and overlooked due to how little time is actually spent at a consoles dashboard, but its a very aesthetically important aspect to get right. The first thing you will see upon firing up any console for the first time nowadays is a home center; these are your first impressions of a machine you just dropped some heavy dollars on, and first impressions go a long way. Both consoles have made vast improvements to their console too. For one, Microsoft hasnt littered the Xbox One with a slew of in your face advertisements courting you to check out nonsense you dont care about. You can also fully operate the entire dashboard along with multiple sub menus via using the Kinect 2.0 (which comes bundled with the console). Even more surprisingly, searching for games, movies, and more through Bing is actually responsive and correct. So long as youre saying recognizable things with a degree of clarity. Microsoft also has taken steps backward though unfortunately. The Windows 8 reminiscent layout with gigantic boxes everywhere is aesthetically hideous. Its nice being able to fully customize your own personal screen with apps that youll probably seize the most entertainment out of, but the sheer ugliness of it all sours the gesture. Theres also no way to check your HDD storage which frustrates me, because I play a wide variety of games and install files are now larger than ever on both consoles. The Playstation 4 however once again has a sleek and familiar interface, where once again your various console sections are laid out horizontally with multiple sub menus trailing down vertically. Games also now have their own separate line which initially felt counter-intuitive to selecting apps, but with the standard bundled microphone you can simply say the title and begin playing instantly. I have very little, if any at all complaints with this dashboard and I havent even mentioned the vibrant blue background and calming music that overlay the hub, which are wonderful little touches. Both consoles also have an activity feed for your friends, but again because the Playstation 4 simply looks sleeker, its Whats New hub comes across more spiffy. Admittedly, both consoles will take some time to completely navigate on muscle memory reflexes, but the Playstation 4 wins this round for its aesthetics and ease of use.